This invention pertains to ventilating systems for buildings specifically adapted to house livestock. The system includes vents adapted to direct the airflow in a direction adapted to create a turbulence designed to avoid direct drafts on the livestock.
In years past, most livestock was raised in open pastures, feed lots and the like. Livestock under those conditions were subjected to a full range of temperatures from the heat of summer to the bitter cold of winter in the northern parts of the United States. Frequently at those extremes of temperatures, the animals were subject to added stress because of the weather. Precipitation in the form of rain or snow added to that stress. The result was sometimes illness; or at the very least, a reduction in the efficiency of the conversion of feed into meat.
More recently meat-type animals have been raised in enclosesd buildings. Especially female animals during late gestation and just after birth of their young have been confined in pens in fully enclosed buildings. Both the female and the young are susceptible to disease at these times, and are best protected from either cold or hot drafts within the building.
By my invention, I provide a ventilating system that avoids direct draft onto the animals in the building, at the same time providing fresh air and avoiding chilling or overheating the livestock. Besides avoiding draft, my invention provides fresh and cool air to the area of the building at which the manure handling equipment is normally located. It is accepted that animals tend to go to cooler air to drop manure, and thus by my system, I provide for more convenience in manure handling because the animals will tend to congregrate near the fresh air.
It might also be noted that in my new system, all of the air in the buildings is drawn to certain exhaust fans and that by the introduction of fresh air in a turbulent condition in which the air is not allowed to become stale, I provide an improved ventilation system.
My system also provides much better clearing up of carbon monoxide, ammonia gas and moisture. Previous systems accomplished this only by drawing large amounts of air through the building. These amounts were acceptable when the air was reasonably warm. However in winter climates in northern states, the amount of air required to eliminate staleness was excessive so that it became too cold. By causing the turbulence, I pick up the carbon monoxide, ammonia gas, etc. without the need for pulling in the excess air that was required by former systems.